Reelworm Watches!- The Angry Birds Movie

Reelworm Watches!

The Angry Birds Movie

Produced by Rovio Animation

Directed by Clay Kaytis and Fergal Reilly 

Starring: Jason Sudeikis, Josh Gad, Danny McBride, Maya Rudolph, Kate McKinnon, Sean Penn, Tony Hale, Keegan-Michael Key, Bill Hader and Peter Dinklage.

****

The Story: Find out why the birds are so angry. When an island populated by happy, flightless birds is visited by mysterious green piggies, it's up to three unlikely outcasts - Red, Chuck and Bomb - to figure out what the pigs are up to (From IMDB).

The Review: 

Reelworm, like most of the world, has played Angry Birds. He has the original Angry Birds, Angry Birds Seasons, Angry Birds Space, Angry Birds 2, Bad Piggies, Angry Birds Pop!, and the Angry Birds Toons App. He bought the Mighty Eagle and looked up cheats on the internet, and protested when Angry Birds 2 required in-app purchases. Considering all that time, energy and even a bit of money invested in such a franchise, Reelworm thought ‘might as well see if the movie is any good.’

Was it any good?

Well it depends… 

This is very much a movie for children. It knows its a cartoon and it behaves as such. There is a lot of slapstick to be had here and it elicited quite a few laughs. Jason Sedeikis does a very good job as playing social outcast Red. He’s the everyman in a world filled with exaggerated characteristics, that always has potential for good comedy. 

One ironic thing that Reelworm can’t get enough of is how the gigantic Mighty Eagle is voiced by America’s favorite short person Peter Dinklage. 

There are also some tender moments where Red’s loneliness becomes quite apparent. It actually tugs at the heartstrings a bit.

What also feels authentic is the friendship between Red, Bomb, and Chuck. Red is surly, Chuck is hyperactive, and Bomb is a doofus. These are all disparate personalities. While they may not be the most in-depth characterizations, each one is distinctive and memorable, thanks in no small part to their unique designs. Even Terrence, even though his doesn’t say a word through the whole movie, has a distinct, if not a lot of personality. 

This movie has heart. The folks at Rovio were really trying to pull a story from a plotless game onto the big screen. Considering the amount of detail that goes into a lot of their games, it is clear that they really care about their product, even if the gaming public seems to be moving on. 

The movie may have heart but it does not have a lot of brains. 

The downside of being a kids movie, is that there is not much for the grown-ups here. Not even a proud child-at-heart like Reelworm.

First off, the dissonance between finished films and trailers has been remarked upon often by commentators on a variety of films, but in this case, the disassociation is particularly severe. The trailer shows a montage of moments of Red’s anger we assume will be integrated into the main story but they are just shown as another montage during the opening of the movie. Not only would these moments have been funnier if spread out a bit more, just sticking the trailer right into the movie is also just lazy. 

The story is incredibly predictable. We all now how it is going to end, and frankly it tends to drag about halfway through. 

“Just steal the eggs already!”

And we all know how Red’s story arc is going to wrap up. He’s going to be welcomed back and be happy with his knew friends. 

While the country song by Blake Shelton is pretty catchy it feels a bit out of place in the atmosphere of the movie. Firstly, the tropical island clashes with the down home tone of the song and also the lyrics seem to be about true, if unlikely friendship and that does not describe the relationship between the birds and the pigs which was when the song came up. 

There are a lot amusing tidbits in the background, like Mighty Eagle’s trophy collection but they and the others go by so quickly that the audience can easily miss them. On that note, there is a moment at the climax where they try to shoehorn a message about how anger is not always the answer but it is so blink-and-you’ll-miss-it that most audience members may forget it ever happened at all. 

The climax of the film, where the birds lay waste to the pig’s castle, after all of the buildup, feels rushed. More time could have been spent on it. To add insult to injury, several iconic birds were not utilized at all. Terrence did not get a chance to fly neither did the blues who were saved until the end. That was letdown for Reelworm and the whole thing was anticlimactic. 

Finally, while there is nothing wrong with being as such, they really seemed to pushing the impression that Chuck is gay. That seems a bit out of place in a cartoon movie. It can make some people uncomfortable. This is an extension of the main problem with the characters. The latter is the most distinctive thing Reelworm remembers about Chuck other than his speed. The characters are very one dimensional with only surface qualities to make them memorable. 

Maybe they just should have done a feature length production of the Angry Birds Toons instead. 

Final Verdict: The Angry Birds Movie did not feel like a waste of time to Reelworm but nonetheless feels like a poor day with the mobile game: aimed too high and missed. 

Three Angry Birds out of Five  

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